Singapore Post fy net profit down 4pct to 104.29mln sgd on weak economy
Singapore Post (SingPost) said its year to March 2004 net profit fell 4 pct to 104.29 mln sgd as its core mailing business stabilised in the last three quarters after being hit by SARS and the Iraq war in the first quarter to June.
‘We are pleased that the performance of our core business remained stable this financial year, despite the tough economic conditions,’ SingPost CEO William Tan Soo Hock said.
Its mail and retail sectors posted lower operating revenue while those from logistics rose 3.2 pct due to higher traffic.
SingPost posted a full year operating revenue of 368.18 mln sgd, a marginal drop of 1.3 pct from a year earlier.
The company also suffered from lower rental yields due to the weak property market in 2003 and the loss of rental income from Crosby House, which was sold in the last financial year.
SingPost has declared a final net dividend of 2.1 cents and will be paying 4.2 cents in total for year to March 2004, including an interim net dividend of 2.1 cents.
It aims to have a consistent dividend policy, the company said.
SingPost added that it expects its core mailing business to remain stable in year to March 2005 in light of the improving domestic economy and a prevailing weak office rental market.
